Class of 1986
by Beboppin' Betty
Summary: Lilah's high school reunion. Her friends remember. R&R!


The banner read 'Welcome Class of 1986'. Seeing it there in black and white made Jason Stiles feel old. 

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Christ, he thought, looking over the crowd. _Twenty years. Where the hell did it go? _Upon the sight of a couple of pot-bellied ex-football players arguing good naturedly, he amended the question to: _what the hell am I doing here? _

Someone vaguely familiar stuffed a pamphlet in his hand as they passed, and he glanced down -- it was one of those 'where are they now' things, which he shoved into his pocket without opening. The whole point of these reunions was to compare your life to everyone else's and see who'd turned out better. That, and getting drunk and reliving your glory days. He smiled a little at the thought. Both sounded good right then, but he decided to find the bar before he sought out his old crowd. Knowing them, they'd all probably be stationed at the bar anyway.

The 'holy shit! Jason!' that greeted him confirmed his suspicions. Signalling the bartender for a beer, Jason turned to see who'd called out to him and grinned at the sight of Bobby Marson. Bobby's hairline had receded considerably over the years, and his suit looked like it had seen it's day ten years ago, but it was still the same guy with whom Jason had shared his wild teenage years. 

Saying a quick prayer of thanks that his own dark hair hadn't thinned any over time, Jason greeted his old friend. "Bobby, good to see you man! How've you been?" Lame question, he knew, but what else could he say to someone he hadn't seen since graduation? Bobby shrugged, smiled. "Oh, you know. Working, did the wife and kids thing. Certainly ain't what I thought back in high school, but it's not bad. Hey," he added with another grin. "Come on over to the table. Everyone's here!"

Following Bobby to the table, Jason saw that almost everyone from their old group had actually shown up. He was more than surprised to see half of the people sitting there. Of course, there was one glaring absence, but he hadn't really expected _her _to show up. "Guys, look who I ran into!" Everyone halted their conversations at Bobby's announcement and looked over at Jason. They all got to their feet, greeted him with hugs and slaps on the back. Jason smiled, unable to help enjoying the reunion with his old friends. 

They played catch-up first. There was Lisa Ridden (formerly Kramer), the journalist; Luke Rhys, who, upon graduation, had lit out of town like his feet were on fire and spent several years travelling, picking up odd jobs along the way. He'd wound up in El Paso working in a garage and marrying the owner's daughter. Bobby had ended up teaching in the very high school they'd all tried so hard to escape, and had four kids with his last high school girlfriend. That one made Jason shake his head. Never in a million years would he have expected Bobby Marson to end up like he did. 

Lastly, there was Roxanne Wakelin. She'd been one of the coolest girls he'd known, and one of the hottest. From the looks of her, she was still both those things. She'd gone to New York after high school, become a photographer. He actually had one of her prints hanging in his living room. "So, Jase," she said, propping an elbow up on the back of her chair. "What about you? What's your story?"

He shrugged. "I'm a cop."

The reactions from his old friends were not altogether unexpected. Their expressions ranged from pure disbelief to pure amusement. Roxanne actually burst into laughter. "No shit? Jason Stiles a cop? I don't believe it."

Jason smiled sheepishly. He'd had more than one run in with the local Sheriff's Department as a teen, so his becoming what he'd hated most had surprised even him. "Detective, actually. Homicide. Divorced, one daughter. Other than that, not much to tell. So," he said, scanning the faces that stared back at him. "Have any of you heard from Lilah?"

Everyone shook their heads in the negative. Everyone, he noted, but Roxanne. She'd gone ashen, her eyes filled with something he'd seen far too often on the job to not recognize. Sorrow. "Rox," he said slowly, dread filling his gut. "What is it?"

"None of you read the pamphlet, did you?" 

Jason immediately reached for the crumpled paper in his pocket, but she raised a hand to stop him. "Lilah's.... she's dead. She died."

Shock, pure and unadulterated, rippled through him, through everyone at the table. "When?" He demanded. "How?" Roxanne let out a sigh and leaned forward on her elbows. "A couple of years ago. You remember that asteroid storm in LA? She died in that. I didn't even know until Jane Miller called me about the reunion. She told me, and I called Lilah's parents for the details."

There was silence as everyone processed the information, then Bobby expelled a breath. "Well shit. She was in LA?" Roxanne nodded, a ghost of a smile playing at her lips. "Yeah, she was working at some big-shot law firm. Wolf-something."

"Wolfram and Hart?" Roxanne nodded. "Yeah, that was it." Jason had dealt with the firm on one of his cases. You had to be damn good to work for them, you had to be damn tough, and he said as much. 

"That's pretty much Lilah in a nutshell," Lisa said sadly. "I can't believe she's gone." Roxanne suddenly shook her head. "Look, we can't get all weepy or upset about this. Lilah would have kicked our asses if she saw us doing that." Jason silently agreed. Roxanne had been Lilah's closest friend out of all of them, and she'd know her the best. 

"So, Jase," Luke said in all seriousness. "Just how good was she?" He was rewarded with a light smack from Lisa, who told him he was lucky his wife wasn't around to hear that. 

In spite of things, Jason couldn't help his rueful grin. "The best." There was a howl of laughter from Luke and Bobby, and even Rox and Lisa cracked a smile. 

At seventeen, Lilah Morgan had been every guy's wet dream. She'd been the sexiest, baddest, wildest girl the likes of Henderson, Maryland had ever seen. And Jason had had her for two glorious months during senior year. They'd hung out together for a long time before they hooked up, but she'd always been totally out of his reach. Lilah had always gone with older guys, but when Jason had hit senior year and _really_ started rebelling, Lilah had turned her sights on him.

And when Lilah Morgan wanted something, saying no was not an option. Of course, no guy in his right mind would have said no to what she was offering.

"You have no idea how jealous of you we were." Luke's woeful tone broke Jason out of his reverie. He and Bobby both had the misty look of reminiscence in their eyes. The girls exchanged an eye roll. Both had been the objects of much desire in high school, but _no one_ could top Lilah. 

"Oh yes I was." His deadpan comment spurned another round of laughs. "Man," Bobby said happily. "You were a _God_." 

With a snort of laughter, Roxanne broke in. "A legend, maybe. Not a god."

"So," Jason said, sobering. "Was she married? Kids?"

Roxanne shook her head, and he expelled the breath he hadn't realized was trapped in his chest, wondered at the relief that followed. Roxanne must have noticed the expression on his face because she called him on it. "Lilah once told me that she'd see Mother Teresa in Hell before she got married and had kids. I'm just glad that she didn't change too much," he explained.

Lisa furrowed her brow in thought. "I wonder if she's... you know... happy, wherever she is." Roxanne shrugged. "If there is a Heaven and Hell -- and I'm not saying I believe in either -- I seriously doubt she's in Hell. I mean, yeah, she did some bad shit, but we all did. We were teenagers."

"You never know what she did after high school, though," Luke said, uncharacteristically pensive. "But you're probably right. Like you said, she was bad, not evil."

Jason sighed, remembering. Lilah had been deliciously bad. " I remember this one time when we were together. She came to get me in the middle of the night on her dad's motorcycle. She stole it, took me joyriding. We ended up in the woods-" He broke off before blurting out 'where she fucked me blind.' They were his friends, but there were some things that friends just didn't need to know. Or at least Roxanne and Lisa didn't need to know. 

"I remember that!" Rox exclaimed. "Her dad was furious, called me in the middle of the night to see where she'd gone. I had to cover for her."

"Lucky bastard," Bobby said, unabashed admiration in his eyes. "Don't get me wrong," he hurried on. "I love Robin to death, but still.... you _were _one lucky bastard."

"She corrupted us, all of us, you know," Jason mused. "I wouldn't have done half of what I did if not for her." There were murmurs of agreement around the table. "I never thanked her for that," he added honestly, noted that his friends all felt the same appreciation for the way Lilah had influenced their lives. 

There was more laughter, more stories as the night wore on. There was sadness behind it all, but they were good memories of happier times. 

"Why do you suppose she became a lawyer?" Lisa asked some time and a few martinis later. Jason shrugged, shared a look with Roxanne. "Probably so she could defend kids who were just like her," he joked. "Oh, that's right! She was a lawyer!" Luke too had put a few away over the course of the evening. "You were wrong Rox, she probably _is _in Hell."

For some reason, they all found that extremely funny. Jason decided then that it was time to slow down on the drinks. "That firm she was working for came here once to give a talk. Remember that?" Jason wasn't surprised that he did, despite his sketchy attendance record. "She dumped me that day, after she talked with that guy who came to give the speech."

"Aww, poor Jase," Rox cooed mockingly, patting his hand. He pulled it away and raked his fingers through his hair. "Whatever that guy told her was what made her become a lawyer."

Bobby shrugged. "Maybe. Or maybe it was so she could get out of this crappy little town."

"Yeah," Roxanne sighed, remembering. "Lilah was too big for this place. We all were. Except for you, Bobby," she said, teasing. Bobby smiled, not bothered by the fact that he was the only one who'd stuck around. "True enough," he replied. "But Lilah was the only one who got out all the way."

There was a profound insight in the statement. _He's right, _Jason thought. _She really was the only one to get out all the way. _The second Lilah Morgan left Henderson, it was as if she'd cut herself off from her old life. If not for the stories that had circulated the halls of Henderson High for years after, it would have been like she'd never existed in the town at all. 

"I miss her," Jason said suddenly, finally allowing the grief to wash over him. It wasn't just sadness for a life lost, but for the life of the most vibrant woman he had ever known.

Rox reached over and grasped his hand. "I do too." The silence at the table was broken by the sound of a cheery female voice through the speakers. He didn't turn to watch Jane Miller speak; his gaze was firmly locked on Roxanne's as they allowed themselves to mourn together. 

"Everybody, I just wanted to thank you all for coming to the twenty year reunion!" There were a few hoots and hollers, which Jane allowed some time for. "Those who didn't bother to show up -- well, they probably had better things to do," she continued with a laugh. "And on behalf of everyone here, I just wanted to say- Lilah Morgan, wherever you are, we miss you. You were too young." There were a few sad murmurs and a few catcalls at the name, but it didn't last long before the music started up again. 

Lisa sniffed once, then brightened. "Hey, do you guys remember the time that Lilah..." Jason listened with half an ear while he thought about what Jane had said. 

Young? He did the math. Lilah had been thirty-five at the time of her death. 

Thirty-five. 

  
Suddenly he didn't feel so old. 

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Disclaimer: I don't own Lilah, but I do own everyone else.

A/N: This was inspired by my own challenge (Edge of Seventeen) at Chocolate Covered Strawberries Challenge Archive. 

Reviews are what I write for.


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